Promise
by Calisto-divine-Blue
Summary: Has that void finally been filled?" HaseoxAtoli one shot


Promise

**Promise**

A/N: I haven't been writing much, but I've been struck by inspiration. So here's a Haseoli fiction for you. :)

"_So how was your day?"_

Her voice sounded choked by anxiety.

_"Okay I guess." _

His voice was quick and low.

_"I…um…I saw your…"_

Her words were trailing into low mutters. Soft and inaudible whispers.

_"You saw my…?"_

He lowered his eyebrows, staring at the phone. What a strange thing to say.

_"…My mom's calling me…I guess I'm in trouble."_

The fear shook the pitches in her voice until the dial tone smothered the final whisper.

Ryou bit his lip and hesitantly sat down onto his bed as he stared at the phone blankly. He set it down beside him, turning his attention to the flickering computer screen on his desk. The conversation had left him exhausted and left his mouth dry. Ryou sighed and staggered to his desk with a flock of butterflies fluttering in his stomach. It was nice to hear her modest and cute voice again. He strained his chair back and slipped into it while holding his breath; his muscles felt limp. The computer light illuminated his dim and vacant room as 'The World's desktop popped onto the screen. The background music serenaded from the speakers as he aimlessly opened his mail inbox, only to have his eyes greeted with no new messages. Ryou's eyes darted up and down the screen at each of the names of his adoring party members until they halted at the sight of the bird. It was peculiar how the frequency of her e-mails declined after the incident at Hulle Granz cathedral; perhaps it was the discomfort of Shino's return. Maybe it was Alkaid's persistence as well, one thing was for sure though, and it seemed that the rest of the girls were giving Atoli a run for her money.

"Atoli…" He listlessly whispered. The butterflies now tapping against his ribcage, Ryou leaned back into his chair, which sounded with a brittle creak at his weight. He glanced at his inbox every few seconds, half-expecting an e-mail from the blonde harvest cleric. The very thought brought a smile to his otherwise stoic face. He'd imagine her babbling on about her day, her day of stuffing her face with steamy beef bowls, getting her skirt caught in the bus doors, and other embarrassments. With a few moments later of disappointing silence, Ryou jerked forward and quickly clicked 'The World' icon.

Atoli leaned against the wall next to the kiosk desk in the Net Slum server. Her eyes darted around the area of the chaos gate and spotted the enigmatic hooded NPCs that spouted their usual gibberish. The harvest cleric giggled, finding their odd conversations and flickering TV faces cute in a way. She tucked a stray golden lock behind her ear, trying to tune out her mother's cursing in the next room.

_What a stupid girl, gushing over a boy she's never met!_

Atoli swallowed, pressing her index finger and thumb against the outside corners of her eyes; she hoped to fight back the oncoming tears. A lonely smile crept onto her lips with the fantasy that Haseo would come to soothe her fragile heart. That smile widened and she laughed, what a schoolgirl fantasy! That fairytale knight in white clothing shifted back to memories of the black adept rogue with a habitual scowl in Atoli's mind. She still snickered of how she played the evolution of Haseo in her head, first form, second form, that horrible and untouchable third form, and finally the Xth form. Atoli could feel her cheeks grow hot and her heart leap into her throat. She dreamily shut her eyes and pressed her fingertips against her virtual cheeks. If only she could say it as loud as she wanted to, if only she could say it without fear, if only…

"Haseo…I…."

"You what?" A laughing voice interjected.

Atoli yelped and leaped forward from the stability of the wall in a startled panic. She bent forward, hands on her knees as she tried to settle down her frantic heart. With a glance upwards, Atoli's golden eyes flowed up the white-clothed figure of her thoughts. Haseo had his arms crossed over his chest with a cocky eyebrow raised to accompany the self-assured grin across his lips. Atoli immediately jumped up and erased her startled look with a wavering smile of her own.

"Oh, Haseo! I didn't see you there, haha!" She giggled nervously, shrugging her shoulders. Haseo cocked his head to the left, amused by Atoli's reactions to his stealthy arrival.

"You sound different compared to that phone call." Haseo teased as he looked back to the rotating chaos gate behind him. With those words, Atoli's feigned composure waned and the brightness of her face faded. The bitter words still echoed across the stark white walls of her room as tightness gripped her throat.

"Yeah, um…my mom just wanted to talk to me and uh…" Atoli's cheery voice relapsed into apprehensive whimpering. Haseo awkwardly looked towards the ground, knowing that tone all too well.

"Nothing happened! It was just a little talk, that's all." The harvest cleric assured with a tinge of anxiety lacing her every word. It seemed almost instinctive. She put her arms behind her back timidly and looked up into Haseo's crimson eyes while hoping for a faint sign that he had believed her lie. Haseo tapped his cheek and tore his eyes away from Atoli's, unwilling to be satisfied by Atoli's shaky assurances. Atoli licked her lips in a swell of affection as she stared at Haseo's arms with a longing to leap into their embrace. She cringed and mentally kicked herself for having such a fantasy about him. Even after Haseo had uplifted her hopes when he rushed out of the cathedral doors with Shino left inside, nothing happened. They only exchanged uncomfortable gazes and uneasy smiles before warping back to town. Still, the thoughts of them together danced into the strings of memory of Atoli's mind.

Haseo squirmed uneasily as Atoli seemed frozen in her silence before him. Even so, their eyes remained locked on each other. The moment reminded him of the hour he had spent staring relentlessly at the taunting 'Promise' card that aged in the greeting card inventory. It seemed too cheap, a wedding ceremony held online. How lame, how fake, and how cold.

It wasn't real like what he felt for her.

"Atoli, are uh…are you alright?" Haseo asked uncertain, hesitantly reaching out for Atoli's petite shoulder. Atoli's eyes quickly blinked and glimmered, as she seemed to return to consciousness. Haseo rapidly recoiled his hand and awkwardly glued it to his side.

"I'm always okay with you." Atoli chirped, cheeks pink and smile endearing. Haseo swallowed and held his breath, caught off-guard. She cupped her gloved hand over her mouth and giggled loudly, encouraged by Haseo's shudder.

"Damn it, don't say things like that." Haseo scorned between pauses, trying to avoid Atoli's vivid eyes. Footsteps loudly screeched from his speakers as they came closer to his character. Haseo's head slightly turned forward and his eyes cautiously followed, welcomed by a mass of blonde hair. Haseo gave a surprised groan and jumped as Atoli craned her neck upwards to look directly into the depths of Haseo's unwitting eyes. Haseo could feel the red spread across his cheeks against all his wishes for them to remain untinted. He instinctively grasped Atoli's shoulders and slid her away from him, fingers still dug into the harvest cleric's skin. He bowed his head with a sense of relief, what a strange feeling to have her so close yet so physically detached. Atoli stifled her giggles while raising her hands to Haseo's chest, wrinkling his white clothing. Haseo could feel his controller slick with sweat as his hands trembled on Atoli's delicate shoulders.

"Atoli, you're such a freak." Haseo muttered in a low voice between clenched teeth.

"Your belly button's showing!" Atoli taunted cutely, completely ignoring Haseo's friendly insult. The adept rogue's eyes twitched at the shrieking comment, knowing well of his attire's bare spot. Haseo looked up with eyebrows deepened, eyes narrowed, and an unamused frown on his face.

"Yeah, well you've got—"

"Are you happy?" Atoli's cheerful voice interrupted. Haseo's features softened and he let his hands slip down to her upper arms, almost tenderly. His thumbs without conscious effort stroked the pale skin of the harvest cleric in front of him. Haseo's lips parted as if to speak, but no words rolled off his tongue and into the microphone.

"Are you happy now? Since we've first met, I always had a feeling you were sad inside and I—"

"And you were right." Haseo muttered as he let out a shuddering sigh. Atoli's feet shuffled as she felt Haseo pull her forward into his body. She held her breath as she found their bodies pressed against each other's, Haseo's hands still around her upper arms. Their faces were just a touch away as their noses almost grazed at the tips. Haseo felt the butterflies turn into bats screeching and pounding inside of his stomach as he looked at Atoli's familiar widened eyes and pursed lips. He still couldn't say it, damn it, after all that he still couldn't say it.

"But, after all those battles and all that loss…something changed." Haseo reluctantly confessed to the harvest cleric. How true it was. The experiences they had walked through together had ignited a change within Haseo, growth of character and growth of his affection for the blonde-haired woman in front of him. Atoli felt choked by her inability to assert her affection, reduced to gingerly pressing her palms against Haseo's chest. Despite the strange NPCs darting across the server, it felt as if the world revolved only around them and nothing else. All seemed hushed as Atoli and Haseo held their anxious words and stared at each other. Atoli felt a small rush as she stiffly and slowly edged her face closer to Haseo's. Their noses slipped past each other as they continued awkwardly dancing around their desire to meet lips, Haseo pulling back and Atoli pushing forward. Their eyes met briefly, but frequently as Atoli carefully slid her fingers up Haseo's cheeks. They listened to the rhythm of their hesitant breathing, still unable to kiss. Thoughts raced in Haseo's head and screamed so loudly in awe of the situation he was in, it was Atoli acting upon him! Stunned by that fact, Haseo swallowed as Atoli nearly hit her target. Just seconds before his surrender, Haseo jerked himself away from Atoli and gently shoved her away. He turned his back on her, crossing his arms with a heart racing like a wild horse in his chest. He needed to say it before anything else, he needed to make it known to the ears and not just the virtual lips.

Atoli felt her shoulders sink and her knees knock together in her seat offline. The chance was there right in front of her face! She couldn't force herself on him though, that just wasn't her. The harvest cleric, rush crashing, looked down at her feet meekly.

"It almost happened…" Atoli muttered under her breath, disappointed.

_What a stupid girl, gushing over a boy she's never met!_

_What a stupid girl…_

"Atoli, I'm sorry…but this isn't what I want." Haseo explained, back still facing the harvest cleric. How pathetic, he could not even muster up the courage to face her online. Atoli felt her heart splitting in two at every sharp word that cut the air. She felt the jagged controller fall down at her feet along with tears brimming her eyes. She tried to restrain the sobs from reaching the microphone, but a few whimpers echoed into it. Haseo quickly spun around, confused at Atoli's reactions.

"So, I guess…you're going for Alkaid right? Or is it Shino? Shino's really nice…" Atoli's voice trailed and cracked in desperation to suppress her sadness. Haseo shook his head and extended his reluctant hand to Atoli's face.

"No, no…that's not what I meant!" Haseo cried out, palm cupping Atoli's cheek. Atoli's insecure assumptions plucked at his nerves.

"But…Alkaid and Shino are so much better for you, don't you think? Alkaid's strong and can fight and Shino's smart and kind and…"

"Shut up, Atoli. I didn't want them like _that,_ there was a damn reason I ran after you at Hulle Granz cathedral!" Haseo snapped, frustrated. His other hand seized Atoli's shoulder, drawing out a surprised yelp from the harvest cleric. Atoli gazed at the familiar grimace and angry glare of Haseo's usual self and felt herself wither beneath it. Haseo wanted to shake her into believing him, shake her to make her realize what he really meant. He just wanted her to know before having to dance around saying it to her face.

"So…it's me?" Atoli questioned in a whisper, eager to believe but unsure to do so. Haseo nodded anxiously, glad it finally got through her head.

"But…you said this isn't what you wanted." Atoli retorted, puzzled.

"It isn't. I don't want to be restricted to seeing you only in 'The World'."

"So…you want to see me—"

"Offline."

Atoli's eyes widened, as did her smile, and she felt all rays of hope burst inside of her. Her captivating smile filled Haseo's eyes and drew out a comforted smirk of his own. Atoli chuckled and leaped into Haseo's chest, nuzzling her face playfully in his clothing. This was everything she had dreamed for. A streak of red slapped across Haseo's cheeks while his hands trembled just above Atoli's shoulders. He stiffly forced his arms away and tentatively wrapped them around Atoli's back as she giggled into his chest.

"Do you promise you'll come by?" Atoli asked, looking up at Haseo's warm visage. Her inquiry was met with silence, as Haseo said nothing, but only smiled.

_"So are you going to see me today?"_

Her voice was cracking with excitement.

"_Yeah, I did promise I would."_

His voice was loud with clarity and underlying delight.

_"You're happy, right?"_

She questioned with a cute snicker.

_"Wh-what? I…uh…"_

He stuttered, butterflies returning.

_"If you're happy, I'm happy."_

She chirped playfully. Her ears were eager to hear the answer.

_"Then…I'm happy." _

A/N: Sorry if its too short for your tastes, I didn't want to drabble on with this fiction though. Well, thank you for reading and have a nice day. :)


End file.
